Traditional electro-optical imaging payloads include an optical telescope to collect the light from the object scene and map the photons to an image plane to be digitized by a focal plane detector array. The size, weight, and power (SWaP) for the traditional imager is dominated by the optical telescope, driven primarily by the large optics, large stiff structures, and the thermal control needed to maintain precision free-space optical alignments. These factors drive the cost, which scales in relation to the optical telescope aperture radius.
Conventional inferometric imaging devices generally include multiple PIC devices that receive and process light. The PIC devices provide signals that are used to generate images based on the incoming light. Imaging systems can utilize phased optical arrays with two-dimensional surfaces, thereby enabling the construction of flat-panel optical systems.
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